Mortgage buoy sinks some homeowners in Hampton Roads (can't wait for health care)

Michele McBeth was not behind on her house payments and never had been. But money was tight for the Norfolk elementary school teacher in 2009. She hadn't seen a raise in years, and her son would soon be starting college.

McBeth was looking for any way to relieve some of the strain on her budget, so she contacted her mortgage company to see whether it could lower her payments.

The company offered help through the U.S. Treasury Department's Making Home Affordable program, and McBeth signed on to a trial loan modification.

I do feel sorry for her but putting that aside THIS IS A VERY INTEREST PART OF THE STORY... "This wasn't how the Making Home Affordable program was supposed to work. The goal was to help people stay in their homes by modifying their mortgages and reducing their payments. But, in its haste to reach out to millions of homeowners, the government made several missteps. The rules kept changing, the calculations were complex, and many of the banks and mortgage companies tasked with implementing the program didn't fully understand it or have the staff to handle it."

JUST WAIT UNTIL THEY HANDLE HEALTH CARE

you don’t qualify for the loan mod if you are current on your mortgage

Her mortgage company told her to skip two payments and then to pay less each month for her reduced mortgage. By the time they refused her mod., she was behind 3 months.

Read the article. The whole program is a cluster%$^#.

You know, this is a common problem and illustrates how hard it is to cut the federal or state budgets. NO ONE wants to do with less. It is that simple. Don’t believe me? Then try this simple plan.

Cut YOUR budget 10% for the next six months. That’s right, total up what you owe and cut 10% total from your budget for just 6 months. Most folks can’t do it, or I should say WON’T do it.

I saw all this coming down 6 months before the election, and cut my budget then 20%. I have since gone back up to 15% less. The problem most people have is that they won’t stop spending money, JUST LIKE THE FREAKING GOVERNMENT.

Oh the wails of dispair, I hear whenever I mention this, but most folks I know are spending more this year than last, despite many being unemployed. Cut out a cell phone-nope can’t do it. Cut back on cable-I need my NFL. Cut back on the A/C or heater-nope. Stop eating out as much or completely-whatever. Seriously, the excuses are a coming think and heavy.

And yes, I hear some of them planning to spend for college when one or both of them are unemployed. I just shake my head. Not to sound pompous, cause I have a bankruptcy in my past years ago, but I did learn from it and never plan to go there again.

Oh yea, cut up the credit cards-sorry I might need them. So yes, I can see how most EVERYONE is in deep do do, cause almost none of us are really serious about cutting spending.

Great rant! I agree with you point-for-point.

I’ve had the same experience of employees wailing that they don’t have enough to pay the rent. So, I suggest a really nice apartment with a payment less than 1/2 the one they are now in. But it’s in Pomona. “Oh, no, I wouldn’t live there; gangs (read, “other races”), blah, blah.” None of their concerns are substantially true, but Pomona isn’t beautiful suburban Fullerton. Phhht!

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